REACH Stimulates Young Minds
Nearly 700 second and third graders in the Huntington School District have been participating in the REACH program over the past ten months. Taught by the primary school librarians, the weekly enrichment classes have offered the youngsters various unique learning opportunities.
The librarians include Georganne White (Washington), Cindy Tietjen (Jefferson), Denise Smith (Flower Hill) and Ellen Blanchard (Southdown). Two third grade workshops this spring provided the program with some additional “spice.”
The sessions were conducted by visiting teaching artist Heather Thorgersen, who has previously worked with the district’s SEARCH program for academically talented students. The spring workshops, which were presented in a Reader’s Theater format, were related to an in-depth study of “inventors and inventions” that students found quite interesting.
“During the first half of the school year, the librarians had each of their classes study inventors and important people who made valuable contributions to our country and people,” explained Maryann Daly, the district’s SEARCH chairperson-teacher. “Each week, they practiced with the children, teaching how the students could present their stories in a Reader’s Theater format. They learned the facts about important people in history in a fun and hands-on way and were eager to perform for their classmates.”
Over the course of many weeks, the librarians noticed significant improvement in the children’s read-aloud skills and their ability to work as an ensemble, as well as how the youngsters articulated their words in a much more precise manner.
During the spring semester, REACH teachers turned to a hands-on module of teaching and learning about critical inventions. The recent pair of workshops incorporated the inventors and their inventions in that same Reader’s Theater style of learning.
The first round of workshops focused on getting students to work as an ensemble and how they can use their bodies and voices to bring a story to life. Mrs. Thorgersen used poetry theater to develop these skills. “The poetry theater pieces that I selected all share a common theme of inventors and inventions,” she said. Students worked in small groups and assumed various acting roles. In doing so, they spent time finding the best character voice or tone for their lines. The poems were later shared with the entire class and a discussion ensued on what students liked and which areas could be improved in the future.
The second round of workshops built upon the earlier learned skills and techniques. Students again worked in small groups and were given a poem that has been adapted into a theater piece. Mrs. Thorgersen provided additional guidance and coaching as students exercised a variety of public speaking skills to bring the selections to life during presentations to the entire class. The youngsters were given an opportunity to reflect upon and discuss their personal observations related to the project.
Students say they enjoyed the weekly REACH classes and have found them interesting. “Because of the dedication and caring of these experienced librarians, the REACH program was a great success in both second and third grades district-wide,” Mrs. Daly said.
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